


...And Beauty Fish. Forever.

by iwtv



Category: Orange is the New Black
Genre: F/F, post-prison fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-20
Updated: 2019-01-20
Packaged: 2019-10-13 11:26:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17487248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iwtv/pseuds/iwtv
Summary: Alex surprises Piper with a non-birthday present, post-prison (probably in a beach house somewhere warm and sunny). Just a little something in-between bouts of A 'Narcissist and a Pragmatist' if you're reading that fic.





	...And Beauty Fish. Forever.

She keeps raising her fingers to touch it even though she can’t see it, like a child with a wrapped Christmas present.

There is no wrapping on this particular gift, but Alex hopes Piper will love it all the same. It’s still a bit tender and the lotion over it keeps catching her hair so she grabs a hair tie and makes a ponytail. She looks absurd, she thinks; the last time she had a ponytail she was probably thirteen. She’ll take it down before Piper gets home.

Her phone vibrates. Alex takes her eyes away from the computer screen to look at it. It’s a text from Piper, and it’s predictably what Alex expected: _Hey babe, leaving work now. Can’t wait to get home and forget about this horrible day._

Alex chews on her lip, thinking, then types back: _Don’t forget it yet. I may have a non-birthday present for you._

She knows Piper will agonize over this bit of information for the next twenty or so minutes until she gets home. Alex smirks to herself. And sure enough, Piper texts her back with a sad face and two angry faces and a long _Whhhyyyy_ to boot.

Piper bursts through the door only a few minutes late, with some groceries dangling precariously from her limbs.

“The traffic is so ridiculous downtown right now, Jesus,” she bemoans.

Alex swivels around in the computer chair.

“There had better be more of those little party cupcake snacks in one of those bags or you’re gonna have to go back.”

Frowning, Piper hands her a box of said snacks.

“If you had saved some for me last time I wouldn’t need to buy them so often.”

Piper has her pouting face on and Alex knows it has less to do with snacks than it does the date of the month. Alex pretends to pout back at her.

“That isn’t a birthday girl face!”

Piper smacks her in the arm and tries not to grin.

“Shut up! You know how I feel about—”

“About June 7ths, yea babe. I really do.”

Piper’s pout is now completely phony. She looks up through her brows at her wife. The look sends a hot chill down Alex’s back. She moves in and presses her lips into Piper’s. Piper’s pout vanishes as she kisses her back. She gazes at Alex, fingers ghosting over her jawline.

“So, about this non-birthday present…”

“What? Oh. That.”

Alex shrugs nonchalantly and starts putting away groceries.

“It can wait.”

“What? No! If it’s really a non-birthday present you can give it to me now.”

Alex just manages not to smirk. She pushes her glasses up on her nose.

“I would argue that a non-birthday present can be given at anytime, since it’s non-birthday.”

Silence. She doesn’t turn around from the cabinets, just waits. And then, a moment later Piper is snatching up her box of cupcakes and dangling them over the trashcan.

“I really don’t think we need so much sugar just lying around the house—”

Caught a bit off guard, Alex lunges for the box.

“No no! I need those!”

She catches the box just as Piper lets go of it. Alex swiftly tosses it on the counter and pins Piper against the wall by her wrists.

“That was low, Chapman.”

“Mmm.”

Piper giggles and leans her head back against the wall, exposing her throat. It’s an effortless turn-on to Alex, who catches herself eyeing Piper’s lips and throat a second too long. Piper leans forward to kiss her—and promptly pokes her exactly in the ribs where she’s most vulnerable. Alex lets out something resembling a squeal and jerks. Piper ducks away from her and grabs up the cupcakes again, grinning broadly.

“The present or the cupcakes. Choose now.”

“I choose both.”

Alex traps her against the countertop. This time Piper doesn’t offer resistance when she plucks the box back from her. Piper’s face turns from triumphant to pouty again.

“Fine. You’ve got your precious cupcakes, now I’d like my non-birthday present, please.”

Piper holds out her hand expectantly and Alex chuckles, slapping her palm.

“It’s not a physical thing I can give you.”

Piper’s brows go up a little.

“Oh?”

“No. It’s…attached to me. You have to find it.”

A hesitant grin returns to the blonde’s face.

 _”Oh.”_ Well let me see then…”

Piper runs her fingers down Alex’s throat and to the dip in her t-shirt and further down, pulling down the fabric to dip her fingers under Alex’s bra.

“Hmm, nothing here…”

Alex can’t keep the dumb smirk off her face now. She loves the feeling of Piper’s long and warm fingers teasing her skin, wherever they may roam. And roam they do, going up her shirt and around her midsection softly and with purpose. Alex leans back against the counter.

“Getting warm?” Piper asks.

“Nope. Wrong side.”

Looking more determined, Piper turns Alex around and presses her unnecessarily tight into the counter, her hips rubbing into her ass. Alex hums in her throat as Piper’s hands continue their search, her lips on Alex’s shoulder. Alex closes her eyes briefly, basking in the attention. But this could quickly end up in the bedroom before Piper sees her gift so Alex straightens and guides Piper’s hand to the back of her neck. Piper pushes her ink-black hair over a shoulder. Two fingers touch the tattoo. There’s a sharp intake of breath and Alex bites her bottom lip.

“I got it early this morning, after you left for work,” she says, turning around because she must see Piper’s face.

Heavy liquid sits in Piper’s eyes, hand to her mouth. Alex draws her hand away. There’s a smile there.

“Well?”

Piper hastily spins Alex around again and touches the tattoo again. Alex pictures it in her mind. It’s the same small yellow and red tropical fish that adorns the back of her wife’s neck, inked all those years ago. Alex can still remember that scuba diving trip vividly and how much fun they’d had.

It was the last good trip they’d taken together, before everything.

“My beauty fish,” says Piper, almost reverently. Her lips press against it and Alex sighs.

“You like?”

“I love it, Al.”

“Yea well, it was a toss-up between that or ‘bourgeois yuppie.’”

Piper’s face screws up in aggravation and Alex snickers before apologizing. She takes Piper’s hands in her own.

“Why did you get it?” Piper asks with genuine curiosity.

Alex shrugs. “I realized when you proposed to me that it was still special to you, even after everything.”

She waves a hand to indicate all their past problems and break-ups. “So I thought it’d make a nice reminder, to see the beauty in things, or whatever.”

“No, don’t ‘whatever.’ It’s a great idea and I love you even more for it,” Piper replies firmly, leaning in to kiss her.

Alex deepens the kiss and sighs again.

She speaks quietly into Piper’s ear, “Happy non-birthday, kid.”

***


End file.
